Tag Archives: Household

It’s called Bruno, and it’s a connected trash can. You may wonder why your trash can needs to be connected, but let us assure you this is a really cool product, but not for its “connected features.” In fact, Bruno is more than a can, it’s also a vacuum. See that opening at the bottom? Well, it sucks stuff in. So the way you use Bruno is that you broom around your house, but instead of bending over with a dust pan and walking over to the can, you just sweep it right up to Bruno, who’ll then suck it up. Sensors on the inside alert you when you need to change the collection bag, and it stores a bunch of empty bags so you don’t have to go around looking for new ones when it’s time to take the trash out. And of course, it is a trashcan, a motion sensing lid opens up for full hands-free operation. It’s battery operated, so you can move it around the house, and it won’t need a charge for around 30 days!

It’s a decent looking trashcan with innovative features that amply justify the $159 asking price, on their fully-funded Kickstarter campaign. But don’t wait until it hits retail shelves, because the price then goes up to $229.

Each one of these coasters features a different slice of a theoretical human brain. When they’re stacked up, they create a 3D rendering of a human brain, which is sure to impress your guests with even a passing interest in, well, anything cool. They come in a set of 10, and stacking them in the right order should be easy considering they’re labeled. Made from glass, each coaster also features small rubber feet to keep them off your surface, and away from scratches. At $20 for the set, it’s an inexpensive way to let your guests know that you’re into science-y stuff.

Almost every mobile electronic device comes with its own wall outlet-to-USB box, be it Apple’s cube or any other manufacturer’s transformer. But let’s face it: you lose the things more often than you misplace your house keys. With the SnapPower, you can easily add a powered USB plug to any of your home’s outlets without having to rewire a thing. Simply unscrew your current cover plate on an existing outlet, and screw the SnapPower instead. Special prongs on the inside will make contact with the wiring screws on either side of the outlet, giving that USB port 1A of juice. The two other receptacles will keep working normally, so it’s all sort of seamless. Considering it’s $14 a pop, it’s feasible to imagine retrofitting your entire home with these at a reasonable cost.

Etsy seller shopSparklyPony makes some pretty cool tissue holders. They’re in the shape of various animals, from dinos to whales, and the tissue always comes out of some orifice, which can be both cute and funny. Bunny poop tissue, anyone? Anyone? Ok, we know it’s supposed to represent the bunny’s tail, but, you know… No?

Ok… we have the sense of humour of a 5 year old. Sigh.

In any case, you can get one of these tissue holders for $40. They’re hand-made, one by one, out of wood and latex paint, and “each elephant is stamped, dated, signed, and numbered with its order of purchase.”

You could keep your ties in a heap, like most guys we know do. Or you could get the Motorized Tie Rack, and be ‘that guy’. You know, the one who calls you over to his bedroom, excited to show off his latest gadget? And we have to say, this would looks pretty interesting to a specific demographic; we’re thinking recent graduate, less than one year at a new office job, and with enough disposable income to purchase a completely unnecessary, but sort of cool little gadget for the home. This rack accommodates 72 ties, and 8 belts. The LEDs stay on for 10 seconds after the rack stops moving, to give you some time to find your way around in a dark closet. It’s all of $49.

There’s no better argument than the one you can call BS, and then back that up with hard data. Yeah, you’re looking at a lie detector test that you can use at home. It uses the same principles as the polygraphs law enforcement agencies use (heart rate and skin conductivity readings, compared to a baseline), and can tell you with a similar degree of accuracy if your brother really, actually, seriously didn’t flush your hamster down the toilet as payback for you setting his turtle free in the backyard by accident. The device will need to connect to a PC or Mac to work, and unfortunately costs an outrageous $400.

Ok, we don’t actually think you can break a tooth if you accidentally bite on an unpopped corn kernel, but it’s sure as heck unpleasant. The above Kernel Filtering Popcorn Bowl tries to mitigate the “danger” by featuring a small compartment at the bottom, covered with a sifting filter that lets only kernels pass through. Fill your bowl up, give it a few good shakes and in theory, you should be able to scarf your popcorn down without worrying about your chompers. It’s made from ceramic, which might help explain its outrageous price: $75.

“The first officially publicized Federation contact with a Borg cube took place in 2365, when the USS Enterprise-D encountered a single cube in System J-25.” This much we know thanks to Google and the first wiki we came across, but we’ll confess to not being familiar with Borg cubes. Seeing as it does look rather cool though, we decided to tell the Trekkies in our audience that they can get a tiny one that doubles as not only a fridge, but also a food warmer. Measuring only 11.5″ on each side, this cube won’t hold a ton of food, and we don’t even really know how it keeps food warm… but we suppose a cramped dorm room might be appropriate for something like this. It does glow green behind the Borg coating, as well as inside. The door does lock to prevent spillage, while the rubber feet prevent it from sliding around. It’s… as good as things are going to get for a mini Borg cube fridge we suppose, and we’re glad Thinkgeek is only asking $150 for it.

The thing about clothes that require dry cleaning is that you have to make the trek to the cleaners. That’s a pain, which means they’ll often go for longer periods without getting the attention they need. If you still want to wear them and don’t feel like scaring your companions off, the SWASH™ Express Clothing Care System is able to refresh them between washes.

Simply place clothing inside, insert a SWASH PODS™ cup and press start—your items will be restored and ready to wear in just ten minutes. Removes light wrinkles and neutralizes doors, restores fit that’s lost after wear without pilling or fading, and is safe for most fabrics, including denim, wool, polyester, lycra, cotton,cashmere, sequins, beading and lace; not recommended for silk, leather, velvet, suede or fur.

This kind of convenience clearly comes at a price, and the Swash system is no exception with its $500 price tag.

OhGizmo! is a frequently updated blog that focuses on covering items that will appeal to a very specific and often very passionate audience: the geek. Aside from the fare of innovative consumer electronic products, the reader can expect to find news about geek culture, absurd inventions, awe inspiring technology, and an ever growing assortment of articles that we like to think fit within our view of what we’re calling the Geek Lifestyle.